Fueled by economic growth, worldwide demand for metals such as copper has risen over the past several years. Supply has been unable to keep pace, pushing prices dramatically upward, particularly from 2003 through 2006 when the price per pound of copper rose from around $0.70 to as high as $4.00 by mid-2006.
Tight supplies have led to an increase in copper recycling, which, in turn, has created a market for used copper and made the material a more attractive target for theft. In fact, thefts of copper wire have been on the rise across the United States, with no apparent geographic pattern and all sectors that use the material, including electric utilities and agriculture are being targeted.
Thefts of copper wire from the agricultural industry typically occur from irrigation systems. High-tech irrigation systems which maximize yield and minimize water use may contain 100 or more pounds of copper wire in a single field. When combined with the remote location of most agriculture, intermittent use and the value of the copper, irrigation systems has become a prime target for metal thieves.
The damage done by this type of theft extends beyond the loss of the wire, as the theft is often damaging to both the underlying equipment and may result in loss of agricultural productivity as crops go unwatered. Aside from the obvious economic impact, and service disruptions are the possibility of personal injury for persons involved in the theft or subsequent recovery efforts.
Beside the best efforts of working closely with scrap metal dealers and law enforcement, active counter measures to protect the wire are still largely absent. A number of prior conventional approaches exist in guarding from general theft such as motion detecting alarm systems, electric fencing, and video monitoring devices. However none of the conventional approaches are adequate solutions for farming equipment such as pivot irrigation systems because of their size, and remote location. Furthermore, none of these traditional theft prevention methods have been adapted to work with irrigation systems.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,867,099, 4,418,337 and 4,472,879 are just a few examples of prior arts that teach of motion sensor alarm systems. However, because of the remote locations of irrigation pivots and other remote targets of copper theft, the use of motion sensers is just not practical. The remote locations are often populated by native wildlife such has deer and like animals that would surely lead to frequent false alarms. Also unlike enclosed locations, these target equipment are out in the elements and are subject to strong wind and rain which can create problems for any motion sensing alarm systems. Furthermore, irrigation systems can span hundreds of feet and the application of motion sensors to cover that distance would be economically infeasible.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,198,653, 6,798,344 and 6,069,655 are a few examples of the vast number of prior arts focusing on video surveillance. However irrigation pivots and other equipment located in remote locations will have limited source of power to work the cameras. In addition, the lack of light source plus the need for continuous monitoring play a significant factor when cost is concerned. Once again due to the remote and open location, elements such as rain, snow or wind can all decrease the effectiveness of any kind of video surveillance system.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,523,187, 5,982,291 and 5,550,530 are some examples of electric fencing and perimeter monitoring devices. However, this method of theft prevention is somewhat impractical when trying to protect irrigation systems and other equipment subject to metal theft found in remote locations. In addition, the cost of constructing and maintaining such fencing would be extensive.
Therefore, a need exists to provide an affective means to monitor copper wire and other conductors and to activate an alarm in the event of an attempted theft that is economical justifiable. A further need exists for remote monitoring of items such as crop irrigation systems to report the status of the equipment and to provide notice of possible theft and take steps in scaring thieves and preventing the theft.
The system of the present invention for monitoring, warning and preventing of metal theft provides a solution to all of the above-described needs. The cost of the present invention is minimal in comparison to conventional security systems such as electric fencing, video monitoring, and motion sensing. The present invention provides an alarm system that directly attaches to any preexisting irrigation control system and constantly monitors the system and its valuable metal wiring, such as electric conductors in the form of copper wiring. The present invention can effectively protect the electric conductors by the use of audio and visual alarms plus activate an automated phone dialer to notify of the possible attempt of metal theft.